Gasoline station accounting system

ABSTRACT

A gasoline station accounting system for a multiple grade gasoline station comprising a manually operable printing recorder for each grade having coaxial totalizer and clock printing counters and manually operable to provide a single line printout of the total volume of the grade of gasoline dispensed and the day and time of the printout.

United States Patent Bateman 1541 GASOLINE STATION ACCOUNTING SYSTEM[72] Inventor: Coates F. Bateman, West Hartford,

Conn. a

[73] Assignee: Veeder Industries Incl, Hartford,

Conn. I [22] Filed: Sept. 8, 1970 [21] Appl. No.: 70,342

[52] US. Cl 346/43, 222/30, 235/94 R, v 1 346/60 [5 1] Int. Cl. .3671!5/24 [58] Field 0f Search .,346/43, 60', 98; 222/30, 25, 222/26; 235/94,92 FL [56] 1 References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,254,661 9/1941Markley et al ..346/60 x 1151 3,701,994 1451 Oct, 31, 1972 3 ,030,0l 54/1962 Wieslander et al. ..235/94 3,430,252 2/1969 Bonner ..346/43 3,508,681 4/1970 Fitzgerald ..222/30 3,512,157 5/1970 Zuckerman ..346/43Primary Examiner -Joseph W. Hartary Attorney--Prutzman, Hayes, Kalb &Chilton [5 7] ABSTRACT A gasolinestation accountingsystem for a multiplegrade gasoline station comprising a manually operable printing recorderfor each grade having coaxial totalizer and clock printing counters andmanually operable to provide a single line printout of the total volumeof the grade of gasoline dispensed and the day and time of the printout.

I 4 Claims, 2 Drawing Figures PATENTEnnct 31 m2 V 3. 70 1, 994

SHEET 0F 2 Q DUU DH mmQZmJm DHU DMD mwOZmj INVENTOR COATES F. BATEMANATTORNEYS pointed out more in detail hereinafter.

. v v 1 I GASOLINE STATION ACCOUNTING SYSTEM BRIEF SUMMARY OF THEINVENTION The present invention relates generally to gasoline stationaccounting systems and more particularly to a gasoline stationaccounting system adapted to provide a'printout of the volume ofgasoline dispensed.

It is a principal aim of thepresent invention to provide a new andimproved gasoline station accounting system adapted to provide aseparate printout of the total volume of each grade of gasolinedispensed from a multiple grade gasoline station; c

It is another aim of the present invention to provide a new and improvedgasoline station accounting system useful in accounting to the oilcompany supporting the station the volume of gasoline delivered at eachwholesale unit volume price established by the oil company. In manyinstances the gasoline in the undergroundtanks of a gasoline station isowned by the supporting oil company and the station operator purchasesthe gasoline from the oil company as it is dispensed and at the currentwholesale unit volume price established. by the oil company. Thus, the

' gasoline station accounting system of the present inaccompanyingdrawings of an illustrative application of the invention.

' BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a generally schematic view, partly broken away, of a multiplegrade gasoline station incorporating an embodiment of a gasoline stationaccounting system in accordance with the present invention; and

FIG. 2 is a generally schematic view, partly broken away and partly insection, of a recorder of the gasoline station accounting system.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring now to the drawings indetail, a multiple grade gasoline station incorporating an embodiment ofa gasoline station accounting system of the present invention is showncomprising two fuel storage tanks 10, 12 for two different grades ofgasoline designated A and B for the purpose of this description. Thegasoline station is shown comprising two. grade A pumps l4, 16 connectedto the grade A tank 10, two grade B pumps 18, .20 connected to the gradeB tank 12, and two blender pumps 22, 24 connected to both tanks l0, 12.The single grade pumps 14, 16, 18, 20 may be substantially identical andin a conventional manner each includes a suitable motor driven pump 26for delivering gasoline from the respective tank via a volume meter 28to a fuel delivery hose 29 and nozzle 30. The volume meter 28 has arotary output shaft 32 which is rotated in accordance with the volume of35 and a storage receptacle 37 for the nozzle '30 are preferablyinterlocked in a suitable manner e.g., in a conventional manner bymounting the pump operating handle not shown) adjacentthe storagereceptacle 37 such that the pump motor (not shown) is turned off whenthe nozzle 30 is returned to the storage recepta- I cle 37 and theregister 35 is reset to zero just prior to the beginning of each fueldelivery when the fuel nozzle 30 is removed from'the storage receptacle37.

The blender ,pumps 22, 24 may be substantially identical and ofconventional construction. The blender pumps 22, 24 have a suitableproduct selector not shown) for selecting each of the available gasolineproportioning .valve 40 provides for proportioning the two grades offuel in accordance with the setting of the product selector and the twogrades of fuel are independently conveyed to the dispensing nozzle 30via a pair of coaxial conduits 41. Also, the meter output shafts 32 arecombined by a differential. 42 to drive the pump computer 44 inaccordance with the total volume dispensed of both grades of gasoline.

In accordance with the present invention a suitable pulse generator 50is provided for each meter 28 and a separate printing recorder 56 isprovided for each grade of gasoline and is connected for being operatedby the respective pulse generators 50. In this regard it has been foundthat the employment of a separate printing recorder for each grade ofgasoline simplifies the design and installation of the system andensures the proper and accurate accounting of the total volume dispensedof each grade of gasoline.

Referring to FIG. 2, each printing recorder 56 comprises a totalizerprinting counter 60 and a clock printing counter 62. The totalizerprinting counter 60- comprises a bank of seven print wheels 63-69 andthe clock printing counter 62 comprises a bank of five print wheels -74.All of the print wheels 63-69 and 70-74 are coaxially mounted on asingle nonrotatable shaft 76 and coaxial transfer pinions 78 arerotatably mounted on a parallel shaft 80 to provide for generatingtransfers between adjacent lower order and higher order print wheels ina conventional manner. 4

The clock printing counter 62 comprises a time section 81 consistingofhour and meridian print wheels 70, 71 respectively and a day sectionconsisting of three day print wheels 72, 73 74. The hour print wheel 70bears a sequence of type of 1 through 12 and the meridian print wheel 71bears alternate A.M. and RM. type. The transfer mechanism between wheelsis such that the meridian print wheel 71 is indexed one count for everyfull revolution of the hour print wheel 70 (and therefore every 12hours) and the day print wheel 72 is indexed one count for every twocounts of the print to provide a three place printout of the day of theyear (i.e., 000 to 365).

The transfer pinion 78 between the print wheels 71 72 is lockedagainstaxial displacement to the left as seen in FIG. 2 by a suitableretaining ring 83 whereas the remaining transfer pinions 78 between thewheels 72-74 are adapted to be axially shifted with the wheels toprovide for setting the day wheels at the beginning of 1 each year.Thus, the day wheels may be axially shifted against the bias of a returnspring 82 to disengage the wheels and reset the wheels as desired.

The clock printing counter ,62 is driven by a suitable via a positiveclutch 90, a gear 92 driven by the clutch 90, and a gear 94 secured tothe hour print wheel 70. The clock 'motor' 86 is maintained energizedthroughout the day such that the clock printing counter 62'continuouslyprovides an accurate current reading of the time of day and day of year.However, if for example, the clock is behind as a result of a powerfailure, the clock may be advanced by shifting the gear 92 axially witha knob 98 to disengage the clutch 90 and manually rotate the print wheel70 with the knob in the advancing .direction. A one-way lock comprisingan enclosed pivotal pawl 100 mounted on the shaft 76 and a ratchet 102secured to the print wheel 70 are provided for preventing resetting theclock in the opposite direction.

The totalizer printing counter 60 is preferably nonresettable and thelowest order counter wheel 63 is provided with an identification symbolfor identifying the particular recorder and therefore for identifyingthe gasoline station employing the recorder and the fuel grade for whichthe recorder is being used. In the shown embodiment the identificationsymbol is shown as ABC" but, of course, numerals and/or other symbolscould be used as well as letters in the identification symbol.

The totalizer printing counter 60 is driven by the respective pulsegenerators (i.e., the pulse generators driven by the meters for thecorresponding grade of fuel) .via a parallel-to-serial drive systemwhich comprises an electronic parallel-to-serial converter 110 and asuitable electrical stepping motor 112. The outputs from the pulsegenerators are fed by parallel entry into the electronic converter 110wherein the pulses are suitably shaped and temporarily stored and fed tothe stepping motor 112 in nonoverlapping sequence. The stepping motor112 is connected by suitable gearing to index the lowest order counterwheel 63 of the printing counter 60 such that the counter 60 (whichpreferably constant speed (e.g., synchronous) electric motor 86 reads ingallons to provide a count to 9,999,999 gallons) continues to provide acurrent reading of the total volume dispensed of the particular grade ofgasoline.

The printing recorder 56 is provided with a single elongated printingplaten 119 and the platen is preferably adapted to be manually operatedby an operating handle 120 such that a single one-line printout may beprovided of the current readings of the Y clock and totalizer printingcounters 60, 62. The

printer platen 119 is suitably rounded to provide for printing with thetwo adjacent type lines of the wheel where the wheel is half-way betweentwo full count positions, thus permitting a complete printout during thetransfer interval and when the lowest order print wheels 63, of theprinting counters are between full count positions. Any suitablemechanism may be provided for operating the platen 119 for effecting theprintout as for example a printer operating mechanism of the type shownin US. Pat. No. 3,446,432 of Bruno S. Smilgys dated .May 27,v 1969 andentitled Meter Duplicator.

The accounting system of thepresent invention has notable utility ingasoline stations for accounting for the volume of each grade ofgasoline dispensed at each wholesale unit volume price established bythe supporting oil company in those instances where the supporting oilcompany owns the gasoline in the underground tanks at the station andthe station operator purchases the'gasoline from the oil company as itis dispensed and at the current wholesale unit volume price establishedby the oil company. Thus, when the supporting oil company changes thewholesale unit volume price, the gasoline station operator will operateeach printing recorder when the price change takes effect to provide aprintout of the total volume of the grade of fuel delivered prior to therate change. The clock printout provides for ensuring that the printoutis made at the effective time of the price change. The printout can thenbe used to determine the number of gallons dispensed at the old pricelevel. Also, such printouts may be used for weekly or monthly billingpurposes. In either case each printing recorder being connected to asingle grade will provide for accurately recording the amount of theparticular grade dispensed at the printed time. To reduce theopportunity for cheating in such billing procedures, it is preferablethat the clock motor 86 be connected such that it cannot bemanuallydeenergized by unauthorized personneh Also, to minimize cheating byincorrectly setting the clock, the locking pawl is provided forrequiring the clock counter 62 to be set in the advancing directiononly. Finally, the entire recorder 56 is preferably enclosed in asuitable casing which is adapted to be locked to prevent access to theclock and totalizer printing counters except by authorized personnel.

As will be apparent to persons skilled in the art, variousmodifications, adaptations and variations of the foregoing specificdisclosure can be made without departing from the teachings of thepresent invention.

Iclaim:

1. A gasolinestation accounting system for independently and selectivelyaccounting for the total volume of each of a plurality of grades ofgasoline dispensed from a multiple grade gasoline station having astorage tank for each grade of gasoline and a plurality of independentlyoperable gasoline pumps connected to the storage tanks such that eachgrade of gasoline is adapted to be dispensed from each of a plurality ofpumps and wherein each pump comprises a volume meter for each grade ofgasoline dispensed thereby, comprising a separate grade deliver recorderfor each of the plurality of grades of gasoline; each said separategrade delivery recorder comprising recorder identificationprint means, aclock printing counter, a constant speed electric motor connected fordriving the clock printing counter to maintain a current clock readingtherein; a totalizer printing counter adapted to be driven for providinga volume reading, manually operable printing means for selectivelyproviding a collective printout of the readings of the totalizer andclock printing counters and the identification print means, and

parallel-to-serial drive means for driving the totalizer printingcounter; an electrical pulse generator for each volume meter connectedto the volume meter to be driven by the meter for generating a train ofelectrical pulses in accordance with the volume of the respective gradeof gasoline dispensed, and connecting means connecting eachparallel-to-serial drive means to the pulse generators for therespective grade of gasoline for operating the parallel-to-serial drivemeans with the pulse trains generated thereby to drive the respectivetotalizer printing counter in accordance with the total number ofgenerated pulses of such pulse trains to maintain a current total volumereading in the totalizer printing counter of the respective grade ofgasoline delivered by the gasoline station.

2. A gasoline station accounting system according to claim 1 wherein atleast one of the pumps is adapted to selectively deliver each of aplurality of blends of two grades of gasoline.

3. A gasoline station accounting system according to v claim 1 whereinthe clock printing counter comprises

1. A gasoline station accounting system for independently andselectively accounting for the total volume of each of a plurality ofgrades of gasoline dispensed from a multiple grade gasoline stationhaving a storage tank for each grade of gasoline and a plurality ofindependently operable gasoline pumps connected to the storage tankssuch that each grade of gasoline is adapted to be dispensed from each ofa plurality of pumps and wherein each pump comprises a volume meter foreach grade of gasoline dispensed thereby, comprising a separate gradedelivery recorder for each of the plurality of grades of gasoline; eachsaid separate grade delivery recorder comprising recorder identificationprint means, a clock printing counter, a constant speed electric motorconnected for driving the clock printing counter to maintain a currentclock reading therein, a totalizer printing counter adapted to be drivenfor providing a volume reading, manually operable printing means forselectively providing a collective printout of the readings of thetotalizer and clock printing counters and the identification printmeans, and parallel-to-serial drive means for driving the totalizerprinting counter; an electrical pulse generator for each volume meterconnected to the volume meter to be driven by the meter for generating atrain of electrical pulses in accordance with the volume of therespective grade of gasoline dispensed, and connecting means connectingeach parallel-to-serial drive means to the pulse generators for therespective grade of gasoline for operating the parallel-to-serial drivemeans with the pulse trains generated thereby to drive the respectivetotalizer printing counter in accordance with the total number ofgenerated pulses of such pulse trains to maintain a current total volumereading in the totalizer printing counter of the respective grade ofgasoline delivered by the gasoline station.
 2. A gasoline stationaccounting system according to claim 1 wherein at least one of the pumpsis adapted to selectively deliver each of a plurality of blends of twogrades of gasoline.
 3. A gasoline station accounting system according toclaim 1 wherein the clock printing counter comprises manual reset meansconnected for resetting the printing counter in the advancing directiononly.
 4. A gasoline station accounting system according to claim 1wherein the parallel-to-serial drive means comprises an electricalstepping motor connected for driving the totaliZer printing counter andan electronic parallel-to-serial converter connected to the respectivepulse generators to be operated by the pulse trains generated therebyand adapted to generate a single train of nonoverlapping pulses foroperating the stepping motor.